Stockholm Science City Foundation

What Stockholm Science City Foundation does

Stockholm Science City Foundation (SSCi; legal name Stiftelsen Vetenskapsstaden) is a Swedish non-profit foundation (stiftelse) founded in 2007 to strengthen the competitiveness of the Stockholm-Uppsala life science cluster. It functions as a neutral expert organization that convenes and brokers knowledge among the region's universities (Karolinska Institutet, KTH, Stockholm University), university hospitals (Karolinska Universitetssjukhuset and four others), municipalities (Stockholm Stad, Solna Stad), Region Stockholm, life science companies (more than 2,010 firms and 37,673 employees in the region), and property developers building the Hagastaden innovation district (185 companies, 2,899 employees, SEK 24bn revenue in 2023).

SSCi's product portfolio is a suite of ecosystem services rather than software: the interactive Life Science Map for company discovery; monthly seminars plus the annual "Future of Life Science" symposium; two newsletter series (Monthly Perspective and Monthly Sustainability Initiative); published reports (STUNS Insight Machine database, AI in healthcare, precision medicine, innovation districts); Hagastaden business establishment support including CoW Hagastaden coworking space; and active projects such as the Precision Medicine Network and Knowledge for a Resilient Society initiative. There is no proprietary technology stack — SSCi operates as a convenor, knowledge publisher, and program coordinator.

The business model is institutional funding plus project assignments. Six founding partners (KI, KTH, Stockholm University, Stockholm Stad, Solna Stad, Region Stockholm) provide core operating funds as founding partners of the foundation; incremental revenue arrives through commissioned studies and ecosystem-development projects with Hagastaden property developers (Castellum among them). All primary outputs — seminars, reports, newsletters, the Life Science Map — are offered free of charge, positioning SSCi as a public-good infrastructure provider rather than a commercial vendor. The foundation is governed by a board chaired by Johan Christenson, with a staff of 11-50 employees.

Name

Stockholm Science City Foundation

Legal name

Stiftelsen Vetenskapsstaden/Stockholm Science City (SSCi)

Website

https://ssci.se

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Stockholm Science City Foundation is a Swedish non-profit foundation that convenes and brokers knowledge among universities, hospitals, companies, and public actors to strengthen the Stockholm-Uppsala life science cluster, anchored by six institutional founding partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Life Science Ecosystem Development Services

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Health Governance, Interagency Coordination & Partnerships (HLAJAMAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Global Health Systems Strengthening (BPAGABAD), Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL)

Keywords

• Life science ecosystem
• Innovation district development
• Cluster facilitation services
• Knowledge exchange platform
• Regional competitiveness strategy

Headquarters

HQ city

Stockholm

HQ country

Sweden

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Institutional Funding: SSCi is funded by its founding partners: Karolinska Institutet, Kungliga Tekniska högskolan (KTH), Stockholms universitet, Stockholms Stad, Solna Stad, and Stockholms läns landsting (now Region Stockholm). This institutional funding covers core operational costs.
2. Project Assignments: The foundation receives funding through project assignments from property developers and other stakeholders participating in Hagastaden development. This includes commissioned studies, reports, and ecosystem development activities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Stockholm Science City Foundation (SSCi) is a non-profit foundation that facilitates knowledge exchange and ecosystem development for the Stockholm-Uppsala life science sector. It convenes academia, healthcare, industry, and public sector actors through seminars, symposia, newsletters, published reports, and the interactive Life Science Map. It also supports business establishment in the Hagastaden innovation district through coworking space and stakeholder coordination.

Product overview

Stockholm Science City Foundation (SSCi) operates as a networking and innovation support organization for the life science ecosystem in the Stockholm-Uppsala region. Rather than offering a unified software product, SSCi provides a portfolio of platform services: the Life Science Map for company discovery, regular Seminars including the flagship 'The Future of Life Science' symposium, Newsletters (Monthly Perspective and Monthly Sustainability Initiative), Published Reports analyzing industry trends and data, Hagastaden Business Establishment support including coworking, Current Projects such as the Precision Medicine Network and Resilient Society initiative, and Sustainability programs. These services work together to strengthen regional competitiveness in life science by connecting companies, academia, healthcare, and public sector actors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Life Science Map (Life science-kartan) Interactive online map and directory tool that helps users find and locate life science companies and organizations in the Stockholm-Uppsala region. Over 50% of all companies and employees in Sweden's life science sector are located in this region.
• Seminars and Symposia (Seminarier) Monthly seminars and events focused on life science topics featuring expert speakers from academia, industry, and healthcare. Includes the annual flagship 'The Future of Life Science' symposium.
• Newsletters (Nyhetsbrev) Newsletter series including Monthly Perspective (focused on life science and innovation ecosystem actors) and Monthly Sustainability Initiative (highlighting sustainability efforts by life science organizations).
• Reports (Rapporter) Published reports analyzing life science industry trends, regional data, and strategic insights. Topics include innovation districts, precision medicine, health data, AI in healthcare, and the Stockholm-Uppsala life science cluster. Reports published from 2013 to 2025.
• Hagastaden Business Establishment Support Support services for business establishment in Hagastaden, including coworking space (CoW Hagastaden at Sveavägen 151), networking opportunities, and connections to the life science innovation ecosystem.
• Current Projects (Aktuella projekt) Active projects including the Precision Medicine Network (for SMEs in precision medicine) and Knowledge for a Resilient Society (collaboration with KI, KTH, and Stockholm University on societal preparedness).
• Sustainability Programs (Hållbarhet) Sustainability initiatives focusing on knowledge sharing and collaboration, with specific support for small and medium-sized life science companies to advance their sustainability practices.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 50% of Swedish life science companies and employees are located in Stockholm-Uppsala region
• +3 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Karolinska InstitutetcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of SSCi's founding partners and primary funders. Karolinska Institutet is a world-leading medical university that provides scientific leadership to the ecosystem. The partnership enables research-industry collaboration, student career pathways, and co-hosting of events like The Future of Life Science symposium.
• Kungliga Tekniska högskolan (KTH)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of SSCi's founding partners and primary funders. KTH contributes technical and engineering expertise to the ecosystem, particularly in digital health, AI applications, and medical technology. Partnership enables cross-disciplinary research collaboration.
• Stockholms universitetcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of SSCi's founding partners and primary funders. Contributes natural sciences, mathematics, and social sciences expertise to the life science ecosystem.
• Stockholms StadcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of SSCi's founding partners and primary municipal funder. The City of Stockholm provides urban development support for Hagastaden and other innovation districts.
• Solna StadcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of SSCi's founding partners. Solna Stad is the municipality where Hagastaden is primarily located, providing planning and development support for the innovation district.
• Region Stockholm (formerly Stockholms läns landsting)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of SSCi's founding partners and primary regional funder. Region Stockholm governs healthcare and develops life science strategy for the region, enabling healthcare-industry collaboration.
• UppsalaBiocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUppsalaBio is a cluster organization for Uppsala's life science ecosystem. Partnered with SSCi on the 'Ordnat införande av digitala tjänster' project to coordinate digital health implementation across Sweden.
• Region NorrbottenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional healthcare authority partnered with SSCi on the digital health services project to develop national coordination for digital health implementation.
• Sveriges Kommuner och Landsting (SKL, now SKR)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSwedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions partnered with SSCi on the digital health coordination project to develop shared processes for digital health validation and implementation.
• AI HubminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAI Hub Stockholm is a community and resource center for AI. SSCi established collaboration with AI Hub to support startups in accessing AI expertise through the Included pilot project.
• H2 Health HubminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealth and biotech incubator in Stockholm where SSCi established a pilot AI tech lab environment for startups in digital health and life science. Startups at H2 Health Hub received coaching and support through the Included project.
• Karolinska UniversitetssjukhusetcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of Sweden's largest university hospitals, located adjacent to Karolinska Institutet in Hagastaden. Partnered with KI and AstraZeneca in a strategic tri-partite collaboration for precision medicine development and implementation.
• AstraZenecacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal pharmaceutical company headquartered in Sweden, part of the tri-partite strategic collaboration with Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska Universitetssjukhuset. AstraZeneca is relocating its Stockholm office to Forskaren building in Hagastaden. The partnership focuses on accelerating precision medicine research and implementation in Swedish healthcare.
• STUNS Life SciencecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSTUNS (Stiftelsen för samverkan mellan universiteten i Uppsala, näringslivet och samhället) is a key partner in developing the STUNS Insight Machine database and publishing the annual Capital of Life Insight Magazine for the region.
• Property Developers in HagastadencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVarious property companies developing Hagastaden (including Castellum with the Infinity project) collaborate with SSCi on sustainable development and tenant mix for the innovation district. SSCi receives project funding from these developers.
• Health Data Sweden (HDS)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealth Data Sweden is a European Digital Innovation Hub (EDIH) with 18 partners across Sweden, co-funded by EU. SSCi is a partner providing connections to the Hagastaden ecosystem. HDS offers support for SMEs and public sector in health data digitization.
• Region UppsalacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional government for Uppsala County, partnered with SSCi on the Capital of Life initiative and STUNS Insight Machine to strengthen the unified Stockholm-Uppsala life science cluster positioning.

Scale indicators16 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• MaRS Discovery District: Toronto-based innovation district and nonprofit convener that brings together startups, corporates, and researchers around health and life science—structurally similar as a place-based ecosystem facilitator.
• Sahlgrenska Science Park: Gothenburg-based life science cluster organization anchored at Sahlgrenska University Hospital, offering incubation, acceleration, and innovation district services—directly analogous in mission to SSCi but serving western Sweden.
• BioInnovation Institute (BII): Copenhagen-based life science incubator and accelerator funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation; comparable as a foundation-funded Nordic life science ecosystem builder targeting translational science and venture creation.
• Medicon Village: Life science research and innovation park in Lund, Sweden, that runs a similar model: a purpose-built district housing companies, researchers, and clinical actors, with on-site incubation and networking services.
• Uppsala Innovation Centre: A top-ranked public business incubator in the same Stockholm-Uppsala cluster offering business development, investment readiness, and innovation support to life science startups—competing for similar founders and SME relationships.
• STUNS (Stiftelsen för samverkan mellan universiteten i Uppsala, näringslivet och samhället): Uppsala-based sister foundation that jointly runs the STUNS Insight Machine and Capital of Life initiative with SSCi, convening universities, industry, and public sector to strengthen the Uppsala half of the same cluster.

Regional players

• Sting: Stockholm-based accelerator ranked world's best (Global Startup Awards 2021) operating in the same ecosystem as SSCi; an adjacent node that supports many of the same life science-adjacent startups and competes for founder mindshare.

Broad incumbents

• MassBio: Massachusetts life science industry association with member-driven networking, advocacy, and ecosystem development services—comparable in model and purpose, scaled to the Greater Boston cluster.
• One Nucleus: UK membership organization for life science and genomics companies, offering networking, training, and convening services similar to SSCi's events and reports.
• Biocom California: The largest US life science industry association, providing member services, advocacy, networking, and capital access—the US-scale equivalent of the convening role SSCi plays in Stockholm-Uppsala.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stockholm-science-city
• Instagraminstagram.com/sahlmscicity

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Stockholm Science City Foundation